Tired of Cryptic Messages?

I have intentionally worked for some of the bosses one might categorize as tough, no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is people and I LOVED it (o.k., most of the time anyway). They often weren’t that great with handing out compliments or pats on the back, but man you always knew where you stood. I would take that any day over a passive aggressive boss – one who hints and uses sarcasm to get what they want out of you. Or one who hands out vague, insincere compliments and expects you to understand what they really mean to say. Are you working for one of those bosses? Do you wonder where you really stand with them? Are you tired of cryptic messages? Then stop sending them by passively acquiescing. It’s time to have a conversation with your boss about how they can better work with you and how they can better get what they need from you.

Start like this: I want to have a stronger working relationship with you, can we talk about that? I would love to find out from you what I could do to improve how we communicate and work together and I would love to share some ideas I have as well.

Can you do that? Can you ask for what you want? This is not about rehashing the past, but rather about crafting the future. Asking for what you want. Visualizing an ideal outcome and then having the conversation, really listen, really ask and really share your perspective.

The definition of a Fierce Conversation is “A conversation in which we come out from behind ourselves, into the conversation, and make it real.”